Green MICE for a better future

Celion Su

Editors note： MITEC being the third largest MICE venue in Southeast Asia and the nations largest trade and exhibition centre with 45，000 sqm of space. Working together with business partners and local associations， the Centre actively embraces sustainable cause.

The importance of “Green Exhibition”As a major venue in Malaysia， MITEC deeply understands the importance of green MICE. According to Mr. Gunther Beissel， green exhibition encompasses implementation and adoption of practices including but not limited to waste Management and recycling where waste are to be segregated into organic and construction waste for proper disposal， and minimised waste with recycling and reusing of wood， metal and plastics， as well as using sustainable products and materials.

MITEC understands the value of incorporating and promoting sustainable actions into event and exhibition planning.“We are committed to providing a quality service to all our stakeholders， and ensuring a safe and healthy workplace for our staff. We know， that through our day-to-day business and operational activities， the industry in which we operate has a growing impact on social， environmental and economic factors.”He observed. To meet the growing demand for sustainable events， MITEC launched its #myWorld Programme， which supports the development and implementation of minimum standards for sustainable events and exhibitions. The #myWorld programme lays out MITECs brand promise and practices to work towards reducing its environmental impact. The programme is also a commitment to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals（SDGs）， otherwise known as the Global Goals. SDGs entails a universal call to action to end poverty， protect the planet and ensure that all enjoy peace and prosperity.

The venue adopts a wide range of green practices， for example， preserving water through rain water harvesting system. The system will use rain water collected at the rooftop for their irrigation purposes， resulting in a reduction of potable water consumption. It tracks our environmental performance on a monthly basis， measuring energy consumption， water usage， and waste diversion.

Overcome obstacles with extensive cooperation

The cause of green MICE cannot be advanced with the efforts from the venues alone. MITEC encourages its clients， visitors and staff to reduce wastage， re-use and recycle where possible. Colour coded sets of bins have been placed strategically around the Venue to facilitate the separation of plastic， glass， metal and paper. Clients and exhibitors are also encouraged to use water stations instead of individual bottles of water to reduce water usage per guest.

Meanwhile， MITEC works with exhibition organisers and partners to incentivise them by extending a certain discount if they use biodegradable products. “We have also embarked on a move to delivering a whole new level of convenience with the recently launched Event Management and Coordination platform beyond what spreadsheets could offer， aimed for a paperless communications between MITEC and our clients and partners. ” Mr. Beissel introduced. He also revealed that MITEC will also be investing in an e-event evaluation and feedback digital platform for a seamless and paperless Client Experience Management.

Mr. Beissel told the reporter that nowadays， most stakeholders have their personal interest in reducing the environmental impact of their events， yet although they increasingly view green issues as adding value to their brand， they often fear that it will add additional expenses， time and resources. Because of this， the promotion effort of industry association is essential. The Malaysian Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers （MACEOS） launched a Corporate Social Responsibility （CSR） programme， called the ‘MACEOS Green Initiatives in 2015 and also collaborated with the ‘Biji-Biji Initiative – a Malaysian social enterprise that champions progressive ideas and sustainable living through the creative reuse of discarded materials. PVC and tarpaulin banners was collected and transformed into trendy tote bags. Durable， handmade and one-of-a-kind with a variety of colours and patterns to offer a fun and fresh approach to recycling. It is still an on-going project and MACEOS is working on criteria to accord events with a "Green Events" logo to drive green exhibitions.

Build unified standards to advance the green process

Mr. Beissel noticed that from a few years ago， as more organisations began adopting green exhibition practices， it became evident that not all sustainable events were produced equally. Others established robust programs that included contracted green practices encompassing the majority of meeting aspects. Therefore， having the standard in place will ensure implementation and practise are in place in order to create user experiences that would reflect a commitment to sustainability. According to him， the industrys attention and response to environmental impacts has accelerated greatly in recent years. Hence， it is a matter of time to adopt and incorporate a more holistic aspect of sustainability into the exhibition world. “Government， associations， enterprises and other parties need to build a comprehensive platform to educate， demonstrates the latest solutions and technologies for practical event management， as well as crucial challenges that needs to be address.” He commented. Exploring and encouraging stakeholders to obtain ISO standards can also help develop better regulation as they have a sound basis to the involvement of globallyestablished experts such as ISO 20121 -Sustainable Events Management System certification. Incentives and grants can also encourage stakeholders to turn their events to go green. “By creating a strong culture of sustainability， it will then lead to all key role players to operate in a more sustainable manner. “ He forecasted positively. .